Tuesday, February 17, 1998

It's official: Cowboys taking training camp to Wichita Falls

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (AP) - The Dallas Cowboys announced today they are taking their 39th training camp to Midwestern State University in Wichita Falls.

The team, which has trained in Austin for eight years, have made an agreement for only one year.

"As we see it," said Dallas owner Jerry Jones, "the Dallas Cowboys represent all of Texas and I saw first hand how much excitement there can be at an in-state training camp. Our fans throughout the state and the Southwest will continue to have that opportunity to become closer with their team in Wichita Falls."

Jones said the Cowboys will open camp in mid-July and break camp on Friday, Aug. 14.

Midwestern State President Dr. Louis J. Rodriguez has said the university will improve its practice fields for the Cowboys.

"The Cowboys are the premiere sports franchise in the world," Rodriguez said. "We will start work immediately, if it comes about. We have a lot of work to do."

The team announced in September it would leave Austin's St. Edward's University because of a lack of space at the private Catholic college. Both sides said it had nothing to do with several thousand dollars' worth of damage that players caused in dormitory rooms at the end of last summer.

The team also considered El Paso, Arlington, San Antonio, Tyler and other sites in Austin.

The Cowboys previously trained in Thousand Oaks, Calif.

Following the official announcement today, the Cowboys' representatives participated in a luncheon and a tour of the campus.

Wichita Falls is 125 miles northwest of Dallas, just a few miles south of the Oklahoma border.